Why some countries are young

Geography · People & Environments · ages 14-16

Name ______________________ Date ____________

This made-up age chart gives shares (%): ages 0-14: 35, ages 15-64: 55, ages 65+: 10. Which statement matches it?
- Children have a smaller share than older adults.
- Children have the same share as older adults.
- Children have a larger share than older adults.
Which three directly change a country's population size?
- Road construction, farming and the weather
- Births, deaths and cross-border migration
- House prices, classrooms and new factories
People moving between countries change the total number of people on Earth.
Circle one: True False
A country expects its number of older adults to rise. Which plan addresses needs that may grow?
- Workplace training and primary schooling
- Pensions and suitable health and care services
- Pension funding with reduced health and care services
A country has many school-age children. Which plan best matches their needs now and when they become adults?
- School places now and work opportunities as they grow
- Jobs now and primary school places as they grow
- School places now and retirement care as they enter adulthood
Birth rates often fall alongside rising incomes and schooling. Which is one possible reason?
- Earlier parenthood leaves less time for births.
- Reduced contraception makes unplanned births easier to avoid.
- Later parenthood and family planning can reduce births.
In a made-up country, the share aged 65+ rises over several decades. Survival to older ages is unchanged, migration is negligible and births fall. Which explanation best fits?
- Stable survival fixes older age shares.
- Fewer births must lower the older share.
- Fewer births can raise the older share.
Countries A and B each have 1,000 residents and 100 school places. A has 300 school-age children; B has 150. Each child needs one place. Which country needs to add more places?
- Country A needs 200 more places; Country B needs 50.
- Country B needs 200 more places; Country A needs 50.
- Country A needs 100 more places; Country B needs 50.

Answer key

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Why some countries are young W1-mt_0X30bM1Hox-s1

Children have a larger share than older adults. · Children make up 35 percent of the population, while adults aged 65 or over make up 10 percent. The child share is larger.
Births, deaths and cross-border migration · Births and people moving in add residents. Deaths and people moving out remove residents. Other conditions can influence these processes but are not the additions and losses themselves.
False · Moving between countries changes where people live. A person leaving one country enters another, so the move does not add or remove a person from the world's population.
Pensions and suitable health and care services · More older adults can increase demand for pensions, healthcare and care. Primary schools serve children, and a rising number of older adults does not justify assuming that less health and care provision will be needed.
School places now and work opportunities as they grow · School-age children need education now. When they become adults, work opportunities address their next stage. The other plans put services at stages they do not match.
Later parenthood and family planning can reduce births. · Longer schooling may delay parenthood, and access to contraception helps people plan births. Starting earlier does not shorten the available years, and reduced contraceptive access does not make avoiding unplanned births easier.
Fewer births can raise the older share. · The older share depends on the age mix, not survival alone. Fewer births can reduce the younger share over time and contribute to a higher older share, even without improved survival.
Country A needs 200 more places; Country B needs 50. · A needs 300 places and has 100, so it must add 200. B needs 150 and has 100, so it must add 50. A needs to add more places.